Another Twitter tipoff is the CULTURAL MUSIC maps (thanks to the #musicmapping hashtag, which is worth further investigation)

This uses the GRACE NOTE service, which is used to add TRACK INFO to iTunes and other music player software, such as my Creative Zen XFi....As you can see, the map can be used to focus on a particular country, and you are then presented with the current most popular Top Ten artists and albums for that country.

So in Spain for example, there is currently an interest in Michael Jackson and U2, but also some local artists.This is particularly interesting when related to places such as China or Japan.These seem to have fewer European and American acts, particularly Japan. Mousing over the acts and albums tells you a little more about them.Worth using for investigating cultural globalisation and the spread of certain musical artists worldwide.

Which countries have indigenous artists resisting the cultural imports ?

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Image by Alan Parkinson from his "staycation" in Devon this year... Creative Commons licensed...

Staycation is one of those words which has appeared this year, in response to an apparent effect of the financial crisis affecting many households, and the relative weakness of the pound against other currencies, particularly the Euro. It's an American term, which is a combination of two words of course.

A recent article in the Times provided a glossary of new terms which were being applied to

particular types of holiday or short break...

How about asking students as part of a unit on tourism to provide a definition for the following terms:

1. Weighcation

2. Gaycation

3. Sackedpackers

4. Palidays

5. Minimoons

6. Voluntourism

7. Babymoons

8. Surfaris

9. Advultures

10. Setjetter

(perhaps the place below would be visited by one of these people - it's where scenes from James Bond movie "Die Another Day" were filmed)

Image by Val Vannet made available under Creative Commons - more available HERE

Assessment: come up with a new term that describes a particular niche form of tourism...

Answers coming shortly....

Happy to have suggestions for answers or other terms added as comments to this post...

I remember a story of a cinema where people who had just seen the film "BABE" were met with a sign offering bacon sandwiches at a local cafe with the tagline: "you've seen the film, now eat the star..."

Remember 'Finding Nemo' ?

After seeing the film, many children wanted a clown fish, and the demand threatened the species and the coral environments where it lived. They didn't want to eat Nemo as much as take him home and have their own... (although I do have a cartoon somewhere with Nemo chopped up in sushi rolls)

This story from June 2008provides a little more background on the clown fish story.

There was also 'Happy Feet', which featured penguins, but there was little chance of parents shelling out for one of those.

Other films that created a big demand for pets: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ?

The latest anthropomorphic antics of the film "G-Force" feature guinea pigs, and of course these are far more accessible in terms of prize and general availability (there's a pet shop at the end of my road - no really, there is...) and it has quite a few in at the moment.

This trend goes back quite a long way apparently - it's sometimes called the "101 Dalmations" effect...

A quick look at the PETS AT HOME website revealed that it's not just the cost of the animal (the guinea pig), it's all the other stuff that they need....

Local news also featured a report last night on the increasing number of cats that are being abandoned. Why not get a RESCUE GUINEA PIG if you really have to have one...

Inspiration for this post was a brief piece in Guardian G2: "Hollywood guinea pigs are for life, kids.

What is this blog about ?

Cultural Geography featured on the now-ex Pilot GCSE Geography Specification - that was my introduction to this area of geography. This blog started out featuring my findings, resources and images as I produced resources when teaching this unit for the first time. Some readers may disagree with what I call 'cultural geography' but I'm still relatively new to all this...

Some of the early content stems from ideas by Dr. Phil Wood , Senior Lecturer in Geographical Education at the University of Leicester.

The blog has now morphed into a general place to blog about geography and popular culture, as well as social science, mapping and a range of other cultural items of interest.